


Jaspar's Centre

by Fluffysminion



Series: Lost in a Dream of Mirrors [1]
Category: 40K - Fandom
Genre: Adeptus Arbites, Dark Heresy - Freeform, Flashbacks, Hive City, Imperium of Man - Freeform, M/M, Mutation Stage: Zero, Shadowfall, The Warp, holy inquisition, inquisitorial acolyte
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-10-01 17:22:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20349811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fluffysminion/pseuds/Fluffysminion
Summary: On a space station located in the Warp, after the team of inquisitorial acolytes have discussing what truths they can cling to in a place where nothing makes sense, Jaspar decides which memory he is going to anchor his sanity to.





	Jaspar's Centre

“You’ve got to find something you can trust not to change, something you can build on”

Jaspar didn’t see how you could trust anything in a place like this, but that seemed to be the point. He struggled to pull his thoughts into order, fighting exhaustion for control of his head. So far it seemed to be winning.

“It doesn’t have to be an object, it can be a memory”

A memory? He still had some of those. He cycled through important moments, looking for the thing he could draw comfort from. Then the ghost of pain, physical and emotional, told him he’d found what he was looking for.

_It had been almost a week since the heretic leader of the hanged man gang had been killed, almost a week since the news that he’d been recruited into the inquisition. The wound he’d acquired in the fight with the hanged man’s bodyguards was still painful, but it was his last night in the lower hive and he had more important things to think about._

_“If getting stabbed is all it takes to get assigned up a few levels, then maybe I should volunteer for more patrols. I’m sure if I hang around in enough alleyways someone will oblige.” Jaspar laughs at this then winces as it tugs at the stitches across his abdomen. Across the table Sal’s grin is replaced with a look of concern._

_There are just the two of them left in the bar, the rest of the squad having trickled out as the evening wore on. It is a perfect and terrible moment. “It’s not worth it, trust me. To be honest I don’t understand why they didn’t pick you instead, you did most of the work on the case, and everyone knows you’re the brave one.”_

_“You took a knife for me, I’d say that’s pretty brave.” _

_“It was pretty stupid. If I hadn’t been panicking so much I might have thought to knock the knife out of his hand or push you out of the way or something sensible like that. Besides, I don’t want to be moved up.” I want to stay here with you, he thinks. _

_Then a knocking at the door kills the words that Jaspar had almost managed to say. “That’s probably for you.” Sal smiles encouragingly as he prepares to leave. “And I’m sure it’ll be great up there. They say everything’s different on the higher levels, even the way people dress. Who knows, maybe you’ll be able to get away with wearing that stupid hat?”_

**Author's Note:**

> Because the most sensible thing to do while in a place of daemons and nightmares is to get everyone to sit in a circle and talk about what would hurt them most.
> 
> The earliest bit of writing I have about Jaspar, both in terms of when it was written and when it was set.
> 
> Mutation progression: Stage 1


End file.
